Joker Go (2018)

Joker Go is a Go variant/expansion using a special deck of cards. Each player has an identical deck of 27 cards which show a configuration of Go stones. In the basic game players choose to either play a stone normally or randomly draw and play a Joker Go card. When you play a Joker card, you place the stones shown on the card onto the board in a spot of your choosing. In the advanced variant you either play a stone normally, draw three Joker Go cards or play a Joker Go card.

A Joker Go card can completely change the board state, making a lost group safe or killing an unkillable group. The potential for multiple stones to suddenly appear on the board subverts player's conventional understanding of the game of Go. It forces players to think about shapes in a new way.

The basic game adds a very random element where you are challenged to make do with a random Joker Go card as best you can. They are powerful, but the shapes you need may not be the shapes you draw.

In the advanced variant you have some flexibility as you have a choice of cards you can play. Having a hand of cards also gives you some strategic goals. You can play in a way that will make your hand cards more valuable. Your opponent has to worry that the "odd" moves you are making will set up a devastating Joker Go card down the line.